Love and Affection
by SaraSalvatore
Summary: Nellie Gilbert just wanted to be normal. After her parents died she thought it would be difficult to accomplish. After a vampire and his sexy older brother show up in Mystic Falls, she knew it would be damn near impossible. And when she and her twin sister Elena are thrown into the middle of all their supernatural drama, well, she doesn't know why she isn't dead already. Damon/OC


**A/N: Sooo, this is just a story that popped into my head. It follows Season 1, and will go into Season 2 and 3. Let me know what you think! If it's good, let me know, if it's bad, let me know!**

**! #$%^**

"Nellie," A voice whispered, trying to pull me out of my sleep.

I turned away from the source of the noise, pulling the covers up over my head. I should have known that it wouldn't help anything, but I didn't care at this point. I just wanted more sleep.

"Five minutes…" I mumbled, and began drifting off once again. Of course, not two seconds after I fell back asleep, the damn person had to come and wake me back up.

"_NELLIE_!" They screamed at loudly into my ear. Okay! That was enough! I shrieked out with my anger and shot out of bed, tackling the person to the ground.

"Oof!"

I looked down to see my sister Elena underneath me, who now had an angry glare when she gazed up at me. I just stuck my tongue out at her, before rolling off and lying down on the ground beside her. Elena shook her head at me and stood, offering a hand that I reluctantly took. I grunted as I stood upright, my head spinning. I looked over at Elena (who still had that disapproving frown on), and smacked the back of her head.

"What was that for?" She grimaced, and rubbed at the sore spot. I shot her a look that told her exactly what she did, and shook my head.

I walked over to the door to the bathroom that Elena and I shared with Jeremy. Yes, we had to share a bathroom, and yes, I had to share a room with my sister. There weren't enough rooms in the house for each of us to have our own, and since Elena and I were twins, it made the choice easy.

Elena and I didn't have the stereotypical twin relationship. It's not that we didn't get along, because we did, it's just that we just... didn't see eye to eye on a lot of things. She was just too _girly_, maybe? I don't know. She was just too different from me, I suppose.

Even if she _was_ my identical twin.

Yeah, yeah. The great and mighty Elena Gilbert was my twin. And it kind of sucked. Just a little… maybe a lot. I don't know.

Jeremy was a lot easier to relate to, even if he was one of the biggest pill poppers I knew. Yes, I knew that my brother dealt out prescription drugs, and _no_, I don't like it, but what could I do? I mean, Elena and I have tried to get him to stop for _ages_ now, but it did no good.

I shook my head, and knocked on the door to Jer's room, and when I got no answer I barged right in. I was going to bug him, but at the sight of him sleeping so peacefully, I left and went back to my room. Elena was writing in her journal when I walked back in, scribbling whatever feelings were inside her head at the time. I didn't understand her.

Elena and I may look the same, but we were completely the opposite when it comes to our personality and style. I was the brash one, doing all the stupid things that she had to come and save me from, while she was the sweet, popular, cheerleading type, which I didn't quite get. Most people could tell us apart by what we said, but just to make sure, I always curled my hair and Elena always straightened hers. We had decided to do that a long time ago in order for our friends to tell us apart.

Since it seemed that there was no way I would be able to go back to sleep, I started to get ready for the first day of school.

Gah.

_School_.

School and I didn't really… _get_ _along_, what with it being so long and boring, and me being so fun and totally awesome. I mean, I went and got pretty good grades, but only because of Mom and Dad.

There was a pang in my chest at the thought of my parents. I clenched my eyes shut to stop the tears from falling, and sighed. It had only been a short while, so the wound was still wide open and new. I gulped, and shook my head from side to side.

_No_.

I wasn't going to do this. I was going to get dressed, go to school, hang out with my friends, and above all: _I wasn't going to cry_.

I had shed too many tears already, and now it was time to be okay. I was going to be okay: I had Elena and Jer, and even Aunt Jenna, who were all going through the same thing as me, and they seemed to be doing okay. And if they could handle it, I sure as hell wasn't going to break down and start crying. I was going to be the strong one for once in my life.

I finished getting ready, and rushed down the stairs to get some coffee for the morning.

When I got into the kitchen, Aunt Jenna was already there, looking for something in the refrigerator.

"Toast. I can make toast," She offered, obviously trying to be helpful.

Aunt Jenna has always been sweet to us, but sometimes it was a little much. I held up an empty coffee cup, smirking.

"It's all about the coffee, Aunt Jenna," I said.

"Is there coffee?"

I turned to see Jer walking towards me. I started to fill up my cup as Aunt Jenna ran around trying to get everything that she would need for the day.

"Your first day of school and I'm _totally_ unprepared," She muttered to herself. I smiled, and was about to say something when Jeremy took my coffee from me, taking a sip as he walked.

"Alright then! No coffee for me…" I rolled my eyes, and nudged Jer with my shoulder. Elena came down the stairs then, looking happier than usual. That was a good thing for me, because I'd had enough of my twin sulking around the house all of the time. Her depressing mood had made _me_ depressed.

"Lunch money?" Aunt Jenna asked the three of us, holding out several dollar bills.

"I'm okay," I said.

"I'm good," Elena mirrored me.

Jeremy looked at the money, then back at the two of us. He shrugged, and took it, stuffing it into his pocket.

"Anything else? A number 2 pencil?" Jenna asked, more to herself than to any of us. "What am I missing?"

"Didn't you have a big presentation today?" Elena asked. Aunt Jenna looked down at her watch.

"I'm meeting with my thesis advisor at…. Now." She sighed, and took her hair down from her ponytail. "Crap."

"Then go. We'll be fine." I said, shooing her with my hands. She looked relieved, and smiled a thank you at us before rushing out of the house. I walked over to my backpack, slinging it over one shoulder. I mentally went through everything I would need for today, making sure I didn't miss anything.

"You guys okay?" I looked up from the ground to find Elena staring at Jeremy and me. I rolled my eyes, and took a sip from Jer's coffee. Jer scoffed at her, and ripped the coffee back out of my hands.

"Don't start." He said, looking more annoyed than usual. I sighed and patted her on the back, shaking my head.

"Nice going, Elena darling," I said, before sitting down to watch the news.

**! #$%^**

When Bonnie got here to take us to school as usual, I ran out of the house and jumped into the backseat of her blue car. Elena walked out after me, sliding into the passenger seat.

"Hey Elena, Nellie," She greeted us.

"Hey,"

"Hi," Elena and I spoke at the same time. Bonnie smiled, and we drove off to the school. Elena was busy staring off out of the window, and I was fiddling with my painted white nails.

"So Grams is telling me I'm psychic," Bonnie began talking. "Our ancestors were from Salem, witches and all that,"

Elena glanced over at Bonnie, barely listening.

"I know, crazy, but she's going _on_ and _on_ about it." Bonnie said, motioning with her free hand. "I'm like; put this woman in a home already! But I started thinking, I predicted Obama, and I predicted Heath Ledger. And I still think Florida will break off and turn into little resort islands." She said.

There was silence, and she looked over at Elena, who was still staring out of the window.

"Elena! Back in the car," Bonnie smiled and shook her head. Elena turned to face her best friend, frowning.

"I did it again, didn't I? I'm sorry Bonnie." She said, sighing. "You were telling me that-"

"Bonnie's psychic now," I chimed in. Bonnie looked back at me and smiled.

"At least _someone_ was listening," She chuckled. Elena raised her eyebrows and smiled.

"Right, okay. Then predict something about us," She said, challenging Bonnie to come up with something. Bonnie smiled, and stared at Elena and me for a while, occasionally looking back to the road.

"Right. I see-"

Right at the moment, a black bird hit the windshield, and Bonnie laid on the brakes, swerving over to the side of the road. My head smacked the side widow, and I groaned, rubbing the soon to be bruise.

"What was that?" Bonnie gasped, turning to us. "Oh my God!" She sighed.

"Elena, Nellie, are you guys okay?"

I only moaned as a response, still grimacing because of my head. Elena looked pale, more so than usual, and she nodded quickly.

"It's okay. I'm fine." My sister let out a shaky breath. Bonnie looked concerned, but seemed to believe her.

"It was like a bird or something; it came out of nowhere,"

"Really, we can't be freaked out by cars for the rest of our lives," Elena said, and Bonnie nodded.

It was quiet for a moment, but then she turned back to the both of us, smiling.

"I predict that this year is going to be kick-ass. And I predict all the sad and dark times are over, and you guys are going to be beyond happy," Bonnie said, looking back and forth between the two of us. I smiled at her, and nodded in agreement.

As soon as we were not so shaken up, we got back onto the road and headed to school, making it there in record timing. We made our way into the school and walked down the hallways, surveying everyone as we went.

"Major lack of male real estate," Bonnie commented, and I couldn't help but to agree. There were no guys that caught my eye this year. How sad…

"Look at the shower curtain on Kelly Beach! She looks a hot—Can I still say 'trannie mess'?" She asked, turning towards Elena and I. I smirked, and Elena shook her head.

"No, that's over," She said. Bonnie groaned.

"Ugh. Find a man and coin a phrase. It's a busy year," She said, her eyes flickering towards something behind Elena. I followed her line of sight until my own eyes landed on Matt, who was staring intensely at my sister. Can I say creepy?

Elena caught sight of what we were staring at, and turned around to face him. She raised a hand in a greeting, but he just grabbed his books and slammed his locker shut with more force than necessary. I raised my eyebrows and looked at Elena with a small frown. Elena just sighed.

"He hates me…"

"He doesn't hate you, Elena, his heart is broken," I said. "There's a difference." I pointed out. Bonnie nodded in agreement.

"That's not hate. That's 'You dumped me, but I'm too cool to show it... but secretly I'm listening to Air Supply's greatest hits.'"

I chuckled at Bonnie's words, and was about to say something to my sister when someone flung their arms around her neck, startling all of us.

"Elena! Oh my God!" A high pitched voice shouted out in sympathy.

I groaned quietly when I realized who it was. It was Caroline, one of our oldest friends. Oh, dear God... I mean, she was nice enough, but she was a little bit too girly for me. And waaay too flirty for her own good.

I tried to edge behind Bonnie, but it was too late. Caroline caught sight of me, and flung herself at me. I huffed, and patted her back awkwardly.

"Nellie!" She squealed. After a while she pulled back, putting one hand on Elena's shoulder, and the other on mine.

"How are you guys? It's so good to see you!" She said, staring intensely at us. Before we had a chance to answer her, she turned to Bonnie.

"How are they? Are they good?" She wrung her hands, worried for our sakes. I scoffed and rolled my eyes, but luckily she didn't notice. Elena shook her head, and leaned towards her blond friend.

"Caroline, we're right here." She said slowly, as if talking to a five year old. Well, with Caroline, it _was_ like talking to a five year old.

"And we're _fine_, thank you," I added, hoping it would make her get off of our backs. I mean, we just lost our Mom and Dad. Elena and I were in the car _with_ them when they _died_! Of course we weren't okay! And we didn't want anyone's sympathy, either.

"Really?" Caroline asked. I had had enough of her, and was going to give her piece of my mind.

"_Seri_-"

"Yes, much better," Elena cut me off, knowing what I was going to say. I glared at her, but she just kept smiling at Caroline. I shook my head, but stayed silent.

"Oh, you poor things," Caroline sighed, and pulled us both in for a 'group hug'. My eyes narrowed, and I had to push back the urge to sock her in the face.

"Okay, Caroline." Elena said, pushing on her gently and trying to get her off of us. Caroline stayed that way for at least thirty seconds, before finally pulling away.

"Okay!" She said, clapping her hands together happily. "See you guys later?" She asked, smiling.

"Okay! Yeah..." Elena said, trailing off as Caroline skipped away from us. We kept smiling until she was out of sight, making sure that she wasn't going to pop up out of nowhere once again. We turned back to Bonnie, and upon seeing her face, Elena and I shook our heads.

"No comment." I said, nearly face palming myself right then.

"I'm not going to say anything." Elena agreed with me. I laughed, and motioned for the three of us to move down the hallway. Anywhere away from Caroline is a place I'd _gladly_ go.

We continued walking down the hallways until we passed the main office, where I caught sight of a back that didn't look familiar. Bonnie noticed it as well, because she stopped us by holding out a hand, and motioning towards the guy.

"Hold up. Who's this?" She asked. I turned to get a better look at the guy, and saw him wearing a jacket and some very nice looking jeans.

"All I see is back," Elena shrugged.

"It's a hot back." Bonnie said, staring intensely at the mystery man. Elena and I giggled, both agreeing with her. He definitely had a very good looking back, and I couldn't wait to see his face. Maybe we'd finally get a hot guy at our school!

"I'm sensing Seattle. And he plays the guitar," Bonnie predicted for us. I scoffed, and turned to face her.

"You're really going to run this psychic thing into the ground, aren't you?" I asked, shaking my head. It was funny, that much was true, but I could foresee this becoming our inside joke for the rest of the year.

"Pretty much." Bonnie shrugged, smirking slightly.

"Well-"

"Jeremy, good batch, man!" A guy shouted from across the hall. My smile immediately fell from my face, and I turned, hoping it was another Jeremy that the voice was talking about. I caught sight of Jer heading into the men's restroom, and knew then that I had to have a talk with him. I motioned to Elena, who had seen him as well. We both sighed, and headed towards the bathroom.

"We'll be right back."

I pushed the door open and glared at Jer, who was using eye drops to hide his red eyes. I marched forward and shoved past a boy who was just a little bit angry with me for it. I reached up and grabbed his face, looking at his eyes.

"Great. It's the first day of school and you're stoned." Elena shook her head, furious with our little brother.

"No, I'm not." He protested, scoffing at us.

My eyes began to sting, and I bit my lip so hard it drew blood.

"Jer, you _promised_." I said, hoping my pain would make him feel guilty. Jeremy had promised that after the summer was over, he would quit doing drugs. I had told him that I didn't want to see his life ruined, and that drugs would lead him down a path he shouldn't be going down.

"Nell, don't do this to me..." Jeremy groaned, and shook his head. I was about to say something when Elena cut in.

"Where is it?" She asked, and pushed me out of the way, searching Jer's pockets. "Is it on you?"

Jeremy slapped her hands away, and I quickly wiped my eyes, trying to get rid of the weakness that it showed.

"Stop! You need to chill yourself, alright?" Jer yelled, all trace of guilt gone from his brown eyes. Elena scoffed.

"Chill myself, what is that, _stoner_ talk?" She asked, searching Jer's eyes for something unknown to us both.

"Dude, you are _so_ cool." I added, the sarcasm clear in my tone. Elena reached forward, trying to find where he hid his stash.

"Look, stop! I don't have anything on me! Are you crazy?" He shouted, getting even angrier with us. I laughed, and stepped forward, shoving him back with the palms of my hands.

"You haven't _seen_ crazy, Jer." I said, furious with him for being such a _loser_. Elena held me back, and I nodded my head. He wasn't worth it.

"I gave you a summer pass, but I am _done_ watching you destroy yourself!" I yelled at him. He tried to get back up, but I shoved him back against the sink. "No, no, no! You know what? Go ahead, keep it up! But just know that we are going to be there _every_ time to ruin your buzz, you got it?" I asked him.

Just then, a toilet flushed, and a guy walked out of a stall. I stood up straight, sighing to myself. It was obvious that I wasn't going to get through to him by yelling, so I tried a different approach.

"Jer, I know who you are, and it's _not_ this person," I said softly. "So don't _be _this person."

Jer was silent for a long time, his face softening when he looked at my face, but the look quickly went away when he looked at Elena.

"I don't need this." He said, brushing past us. I sighed, and sank down against the wall.

Jeremy and I had always been close, but this was just horrible. Elena held out a hand to me, and I took it, pulling myself onto my feet. Elena shook her head, and rushed out of the bathroom with me close on her tail.

She was determined to get to Bonnie, but before she could get very far she ran smack into a handsome boy. I stifled a giggle when I realized that this was the guy that we were talking about. He was definitely more handsome than his back, and I watched in amusement as Elena gawked at him.

"Um, is this the men's room?" The guy asked, much to both of our embarrassment. His eyes flickered back and forth between Elena and I, before finally landing on Elena again.

"Yes, I-I wa-was just, um..." She stuttered, trying to think of something to say that wouldn't make her look like an idiot.

"I w-was just..."

Alright, that was enough!

"It's a long story." I chimed in, hoping to help her out a little bit. She smiled at the boy, and tried to move around him, but he tried to do the same thing, ending up in front of her once again. They tried it once more, but the same thing happened.

The guy stopped, and motioned with his hand for us to move past him, and Elena thanked him, nearly running back to Bonnie. Once we were around the corner, I couldn't help it, and started laughing as hard as I could.

"Nellie!" Elena scolded me.

"Sorry! It was too hard to resist!" I chuckled to myself.

"Come on, let's get to class..."

**! #$%^**

"Once our home state of Virginia joined the Confederacy in 1861, it created a tremendous amount of tension within the state."

My head was resting in my hands, and I was starting to doze off. Why was History so _boring_? I woke myself up and started to look around the classroom, trying to find anything interesting to stare at. There was the new boy, whose name I soon found out was Stefan, but he was busy staring at Elena. Occasionally his eyes would flicker towards me, but they always returned to Elena.

I scoffed softly, and shook my head. Elena always got the guys...

"People in Virginia's Northwest had different ideas from those of the traditional deep South." I stopped listening after that, as the Civil War was boring enough without our teacher making it even worse.

I looked around the classroom once again, and caught Matt staring at Elena as well. Jeez! Are there any guys who would just leave my twin alone?! And why did _she_ get all of the stares? I mean, we looked _exactly_ the same! Oh well. I didn't need a guy.

I pulled out my phone, and sent a text to Elena.

**So, Mr. Hottie is staring at u. Just thought u might want to know! :P**

I watched as Elena pulled out her phone, and checked my message. She glanced over at me, then at the guy, who was still watching her intently. She smiled, and leaned forward at her desk, just now starting to listen to the teacher.

**! #$%^**

**A/N: Hey guys, so that was just the first chapter. Let me know what you guys think, and whether I should continue writing it or not. Thanks!**


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